Can the New England Patriots technically host a NFL playoff game with the postseason set to take place over the next month?
Well, yes.
… But if you’re a betting man, we would advise you place your wager somewhere else.
The sixth-seeded Patriots have one option when it comes to hosting a playoff game at Gillette Stadium this season. It would have to be the AFC Championship Game, and they would have to be playing the seventh-seeded Pittsburgh Steelers.
That is quite a massive ask.
And here’s how it would have to happen:
First, the Patriots would have to advance past the Buffalo Bills in this Saturday’s NFL Wild Card Game. The Patriots split their two game with Buffalo this season. New England would then have to advance past the winner of the fourth-seeded Cincinnati Bengals vs. fifth-seeded Las Vegas Raiders in the Divisional Round. Conceivable? Yes. And those consecutive wins would earn the Patriots a spot in the AFC title game.
Here’s where things get suspect, though — the Steelers would have to rally off a pair of highly-unlikely upsets. First, Pittsburgh, who limped into the playoffs the same way quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has limped for a decade, would have to defeat the second-seeded Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium on Wild Card Weekend. The Steelers then would have to go to Nashville and upset the top-seeded Tennessee Titans, who will be coming off a bye week with running back Derrick Henry potentially back in the mix. Conceivable? Not as much. But those consecutive wins would earn Pittsburgh a chance to play for the Lamar Hunt Trophy.
And if both teams were able to do so, the 10-7 Patriots, who then would be 12-7, would host the 9-7-1 Steelers, who then would be 11-7-1, at Gillette Stadium.
The Steelers enter this weekend’s game against the Chiefs as 12.5-point road underdogs, according to DraftKings Sportsbook. If somehow Pittsburgh not only is able to cover, but win, they’d likely be double-digit dogs again when traveling to Tennessee.
Of note, the Patriots are a four-point road underdog against the Bills this Saturday night with kickoff set for 8:15 p.m. ET.
As the old saying goes, never say never right, Patriots fans?
